This information is for reference purposes only. It was current when produced and may now be outdated. Archive material is no longer maintained, and some links may not work. Persons with disabilities having difficulty accessing this information should contact us at: https://info.ahrq.gov. Let us know the nature of the problem, the Web address of what you want, and your contact information.

AHRQ has released a new Common Format designed to help health care providers collect information about adverse events related to health information technology and devices. This Common Format entitled, Device or Medical/Surgical Supply including HIT Device, is currently available as a beta version for public review and comment. The format will be revised based on feedback and released with AHRQ's Common Formats, Version 1.2 in August 2011. To view AHRQ's full set of Common Formats (Version 1.1) along with technical specifications, and accompanying user information, visit the AHRQ's PSO Web site.

AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program released a new report, Comparative Effectiveness Review Methods: Clinical Heterogeneity prepared by AHRQ's RTI International—University of North Carolina Evidence-based Practice Center. The report explores best practices for addressing clinical heterogeneity in systematic reviews and comparative effectiveness reviews. Patients, clinicians, policymakers, and others assert that systematic reviews typically focus on broad populations and, as a result, often lack information relevant to individual patients or patient subgroups. The report concluded that clear evidence-based guidance on addressing clinical heterogeneity in systematic reviews and comparative effectiveness reviews is not available currently but would be valuable to AHRQ's Evidence-based Practice Centers and to others conducting systematic reviews internationally. Select to access the report (PDF file, Plugin Software Help).

3. Registration Open for Conference on Methodological Challenges in Comparative Effectiveness Research

AHRQ and the National Institutes of Health are cosponsoring a conference on "Methodological Challenges in Comparative Effectiveness Research" to be held on December 2 - 3 on the main NIH campus in Bethesda, MD. The conference will make use of case studies that pose difficult questions about what kinds of research, methods, and analyses should be used to address limitations in current evidence for interventions and tests being examined by decisionmaking bodies. The cases will address a variety of important comparative effectiveness research questions facing U.S. researchers, care providers, health systems, and patients. Topics include:

4. New Health IT Fact Sheet on State and Regional Demonstration Projects Available

A new AHRQ factsheet, "Health Information Technology: State and Regional Demonstration Projects," highlights the work of six states in improving health information exchange at a state or regional level. Select to access the fact sheet.

5. New Threat Scenarios Added to Emergency Surge Modeling Tool

The Hospital Surge Model now allows users to estimate the resources needed to respond to emergencies involving improvised explosive devices, pneumonic plague and foodborne botulism. The Web-based interactive model now includes a total of 13 scenarios on biological incidents and attacks ranging from pandemic influenza to a nuclear explosion. Hospital and emergency planners can use the Hospital Surge Model to develop specific strategies to treat an influx of patients affected by these specific incidents. It will estimate, by day, the severity of injury and the number and flow of casualties needing medical attention for specific scenarios selected by users. Select to access the tool.

6. English and Spanish-language Health Videos Are Available

AHRQ has a series of 60-second educational health videos in Spanish for consumers, based on the monthly Web column series, Consejos de salud. Two videos are now available online:

A webinar on October 28, 2010, from 1:00-3:00 ET, will address the opportunities for dramatically reducing healthcare-associated infections through collaboration and leadership of health system, hospitals, and government organizations. Speakers include leaders from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and hospital leaders of the Texas Medical Institute of Technology "Greenlight Program" which develops leadership decision-support investment models that address clinical, operational, and financial performance.

8. AHRQ in the Professional Literature

We are providing the following hyperlinks to journal abstracts through PubMed® for your convenience. Unfortunately, some of you may not be able to access the abstracts because of firewalls or specific settings on your individual computer systems. If you are having problems, you should ask your technical support staff for possible remedies.

If you have questions about AHRQ's activities, please try to find the answers by checking our Home Page, where we have established links to various topical areas. Also check the News & Information section and Frequently Asked Questions. You may also Browse the Web Site. These features are designed to assist you in obtaining the information you are seeking.